The upside of lawn watering restrictions is that the lawn quits growing, which means less lawn mowing on the weekends. The downside is that means you miss out on enjoying an ice cold “lawn mower” beer.
To define, lawn mower beers are light-bodied beers that a person drinks right after mowing the yard in the summer heat when water just won't do.
Disclaimer: You should probably drink water, too.
So, since lawn mowing will probably be at a minimum, you're just going to have to go out and get hot and sweaty doing something else. Maybe do some sit-ups, whatever.
For me, the ultimate lawn mower beer is the pilsner. Said to be the very first light (in color) lager, they were developed in the Czech city of Pilsen in the 1840s. Pilsners are light, crisp with some floral aromas and a dry finish.
According to the German Beer Institute, nine out of 10 beers consumed in the world are pilsners. Now, if all of those beers were true pilsners, I wouldn't have had to describe the way a proper one tastes in the previous paragraph.
A real pilsner only uses hops, barley, yeast and water. Many of the beers claiming to be pilsners are typical American Adjunct Lagers. In other words, they are beers brewed with significant quantities of corn or rice in place of barley.
The good news is that there are plenty of good pilsners to be found out there. Don't be confused by the slightly different names they go by — pilsener, pils and pilsner are all the same beer. A good pilsner is marked by balance, with none of the ingredients really overpowering the rest.
There are two that are widely available and easy to find. Saint Arnold Pils, the one in the tie-dyed label, has wonderful floral notes. The other is Bohemia, from Monterrey, Mexico, which exemplifies a balanced, soft version of this beer.
Three others that aren't in as many places, but are worth seeking out, are Mama's Little Yella Pils from Oskar Blues, conveniently packaged in cans. North Coast's Scrimshaw Pilsner is one I've enjoyed, especially when on tap, and is available at the Flying Saucer. Widely considered the best American pilsner, Victory's Prima Pils stands out for its amped-up flavor profile that retains good balance.
What's-On-Tap by Eric Braun
Eric Braun is the beer columnist for the San Antonio Express-News. Follow him on Twitter @ebraun or email ebraun
express-news [dot] net.
Reference:
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
Brooklyn Pilsner is a refreshing golden lager beer brewed in the style favored by New Yorkers pre-Prohibition brewers. In the 1840s, the pilsner style emerged from central Europe to become the world's most popular style of beer. Like its ancestors, Brooklyn Pilsner is traditionally brewed from the finest European two-row barley malts. German-grown Perle and Hallertauer hops provide a crisp, snappy bitterness and fresh, floral aroma.
Best With:
Brooklyn Pilsner is a very versatile beer, which will pair well with a wide variety of foods. It is particularly good with fish, shellfish, sushi, Thai, Vietnamese and Indian dishes, ham, smoked salmon, sausages, and assorted hor doeurves, and it makes a great aperitif.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
Regal Pilsner is a double pilsner that, while brewed similar to a traditional Bohemian pilsner, is produced with American Sterling and Magnum hops, giving the beer an American craft beer flair with a hoppy finish. Brewery Director and Brewmaster, Todd Usry, says, “We chose Sterling hops for its floral aroma over the spiciness of Saaz hops traditionally used in pilsners. The Magnum hops finish the beer with a clean mouthfeel.” At 7% ABV (alcohol by volume), Regal Pilsner is full, yet soft in traditional pilsner style.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
This European-style Pilsner is brewed with German malt and Czech hops. The result is a clean, straw-colored beer with a refreshing, crisp finish.
Best With:
This German-style pilsener pairs nicely with Mexican seafood dishes, fresh salmon, hors d'oeuvres, Quiche Lorraine, Cobb salad, gazpacho, tabouli, thick potato chips, fresh strawberries or cherries.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner Lager
A brilliant, refreshing lager; hand-crafted using traditional methods and ingredients. A zesty, German-style pilsner with a dry, crisp finish.
Best With:
Great with spicy, strong flavored food, as well as dishes with lots of fresh herbs or garlic.
Awards:
GABF Gold (1998), "By bar one of the best and most drinkable lagers in the US today" Beer Advocate
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsener - Lager
Climb on in and grab a paddle. Our first foray into lagered beers, Blue Paddle Pilsener-Lager, is a Czech style pilsener with a refreshing crispness from noble hops and a rich, malty finish. 'Blue Paddle' refers to the implement our warehouse manager's Grandma once used to lovingly paddle his a** when she caught him stealing sips of her beer. With more body than a traditional Belgian pils, Blue Paddle is reflective of Europe's finest pilseners.
Best With:
Lauren Salazar, our sensory magician, loves Blue Paddle with Indian foods, olives or tapenade, spiced almonds, mint tomato couscous, shrimp cocktail, and roasted peppers.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
Named for the delicate engravings popularized by 19th century seafarers, Scrimshaw is a fresh tasting Pilsner brewed in the finest European tradition using Munich malt and, Hallertauer and Tettnang hops. Scrimshaw has a subtle hop character, a crisp, clean palate, and a dry finish.
Best With:
A great gold pilsner will always work with all seafood dishes, brothy soups, tapas, and just about anything off the backyard grill. This brew also lends itself nicely jambalaya, falafels, and certain Caribbean dishes. Fried pub fare is also a fine accompaniment to German pilsener.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
Our new canned good is a delicious, small-batch version of the beer that made Pilsen, Czechoslovakia famous. Mama’s is made with hearty amounts of pale malt, German specialty malts, and traditional (Saaz) and 21st century Bavarian hops. It’s the perfect antidote for the watered-down, cornfed versions of pilsner clogging America’s shelves. Our first canned lager, it’s also fermented at cool temperatures with a German yeast. While it’s rich with Czeched-out flavor, Mama’s gentle hopping (about 35 IBUs) and low ABV (just 5.3%) makes it a luxurious but low-dose beer.
Self-Defined Style:
pilsener
Pilsner is one of the world’s most popular beers and there are many interpretations of this style. The great pilsner beers of Germany, specifically Northern Germany, are the inspiration for our second lager - Hans’ Pils. These beers are known for being hoppier than the average pilsner and ours is no exception. In fact, at 52 IBU’s, it is hoppier than many pale ales. The featured hop in this beer is the spicy and herbal Tettnang Tettnanger hop. German pilsner malt yields a pale golden color and provides the perfect support for our blend of German hops.
Self-Defined Style:
Bohemian Pilsener
Redhook and his buddies enjoyed last year’s pilsner so much that he is adding it to Redhook Brewery’s year-round lineup. Already a proven recipe, this beer was one of Redhook’s most beloved and highly consumed Seasonals when it was released last summer under the guise of Rope Swing Pilsner. Redhook Pilsner is available in grocery stores in 12-ounce bottles and on draught nationwide.
Best With:
Rope Swing pairs nicely with barbecued chicken, bratwurst, spicy food, fresh fish, and green salad.
Self-Defined Style:
Imperial Pilsner
Imperial Pilsner, part of the Morimoto Signature Series, was launched in September 2003. The beer was selected by internationally acclaimed Chef Masaharu Morimoto--a James Beard awarded chef and one of the stars of the Food Network series, Iron Chef. Brewed with four ingredients: 100% French Pilsner Malt, 100% Sterling Hops, Free Range Coastal Water and Czech Pilsner Yeast. Imperial Pilsner is golden in color with a dry hop floral aroma and intense hop bitterness supported by a big malty backbone.
Best With:
An all around food lover, this pilsner will work with anything from veal to bar foods to seafood to the spiciest of Thai and Cajun dishes.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
The sparkling mouth feel of each sip confirms the dedication to traditional European craftsmanship. Every aspect of the brewing process of the family-owned Trumer Brauerei in Salzburg has been recreated with exacting detail at the Trumer Brauerei Berkeley. Trumer Pils is the wonderful result of a unique and special brewing process, which sets it apart from other beers.
Self-Defined Style:
German Pilsner
Heaps of hops give this pale lager a bracing, herbal bite over layers of soft and smooth malt flavor. This refreshing combination of tastes makes Prima a classy quencher in the tradition of the great pilsners of Europe. Dry and delightful, this is an elegant beer.
Best With:
A great gold pilsner will always work with all seafood dishes, brothy soups, tapas, and just about anything off the backyard grill. This brew also lends itself nicely jambalaya, falafels, and certain Caribbean dishes. Fried pub fare is also a fine accompaniment to German pilsener.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
Germany's best selling draught beer. Balanced taste of freshness and distinctive but crisp hop character.
Best With:
A great gold pilsner will always work with all seafood dishes, clear broth soups and tapas. This brew also lends itself nicely jambalaya, falafels, and certain Caribbean dishes. Don't forget a good pilsner will always work with bar foods especially brats.
Self-Defined Style:
Pale Lager
Salva Vida is Honduras' leading brand that delivers a slightly sweet malt taste and mild hop notes.
•Awarded a Gold Medal at the 2009 Australian International Beer Awards
•Bottled in a traditional amber long neck bottle with a distinctive foil wrap
Self-Defined Style:
German Pilsner
The König pours clearer than about any beer you can imagine. This brew is a medium golden color with exceptional clarity and plenty of small, well-defined bubbles meeting at a thin white head that lingers for the duration of the beer. König has the typical aroma of a Pilsner, only with an additional dose of biscuity malt that gives this an unusually sweet bready aroma. In the mouth, this beer is exceedingly flavorful. It starts sweet and sharp on the tongue with just a slight bite of hop.
Self-Defined Style:
Euro Pale Lager
Appearance: Hazy medium golden color, with a massive white cloud top head, which retains very well, thick patchy lacing, and numerous streams of slow-rising carbonation. Tide marks form as the beer is consumed.
Aroma: Very prominent noble hops, with strong cracker malt notes, in all, the prototypical Pils aroma. No skunk is evident, as the bottle was protected from llght.
Taste: Crisp hop notes dominate the open, as the taste progresses, sweet pale malt notes rise throughout the taste, although remain a bit subdued. Finishes with a mild, lingering noble hop note.
Self-Defined Style:
Brazilian Lager
A Brazilian favorite. Try this light pilsner. Clear; light golden color. Starts off with a nice malt flavor; a balanced dry bitter hoppy finish.
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
In Bavaria, where the pilsner or "Pils" style was nurtured, brewmasters hold pilsners in very high esteem and almost universally prefer it to any other style of beer. These true pilsner beers are long lagered and heavily hopped, resulting in a light, crisp beer with a dry, bitter finish.
Self-Defined Style:
Czech Pilsener
TYPE:
Light lager beer, contains 4.8 % of alcohol.
CHARACTERISTIC:
Light lager with pleasant aroma which equally blends tastes of both malt and hop with short refreshing bitter final taste. It is made according to a Czech traditional recipe with eye-taking light gold colour and rich froth.
Guarantee:
Pasteurized with guarantee up to 90 days (inland bottles), 180 days (export bottles), 50 days (kegs).
Self-Defined Style:
Pilsner
German Quality Brewed Light The time is right for Warsteiner Premium HiLight! Expect the quality, taste and drinkability of Warsteiner now in a light beer. Warsteiner Premium HiLight will be available this spring at select retailers.
Pilsner style – Brewed according to German Purity Law of 1516 with no chemicals, additives or preservatives
Brewed exclusively with German hop varieties – featuring Nobel Hallertau hops and 100% two-row German spring barley malt.
Self-Defined Style:
Bright Lager
Medium-bodied; natural, soft conditioning; hedonistic fresh herbal aroma; a flavor that is the best of fresh-baked bread, fields of grain, and spice, with a solid malt middle. Clean, sparkling, and quintessentially thirst-quenching.
Best With:
Perfect with traditional Czech dishes like roast pork with dumplings & cabbage or breaded, fried cheese. The crisp effervescence of Žatec makes it a great match with lobster, monkfish or even a strong-flavored oily fish like mackerel; it can also cool the heat of spicy Asian cuisine. Serve in a stemmed Zatec goblet or fluted pils glass at 42-45 deg. F.
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